Golden Sun eXtra Your Local News Source, Mohave County, AZ

The Phoenix man who shot a photo radar van operator in north Phoenix last year has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.

Thomas Destories, 69, entered his plea Tuesday in Maricopa County Superior Court. His plea bargain calls for him to be sentenced to 22 years in prison. Sentencing is set for Aug. 20.

Doug Georgianni, 51, was shot April 19, 2009, as he operated a photo radar van on the Loop 101.

Destories was arrested 12 hours later at his home, a short distance from the shooting scene.

Andrew Thomas, the Maricopa County attorney at the time, said prosecutors believed the killing was premeditated and Destories was charged with first-degree murder. Destories, however, said he did not know anyone was in the van and that he did not intend for anyone to get hurt.

The county attorney's office said Tuesday that the date of the crime fell within a window in which a person convicted of second-degree murder could earn early release credits. Because of that, Destories will have to serve only 85 percent of his sentence. The Legislature has since changed the law so second-degree murder sentences are "flat-time."

The shooting was a milestone in a controversy over photo radar on state freeways. The program ended last Thursday after Gov. Jan Brewer allowed the state contract with Redflex Traffic Systems to expire.

SOCIAL BOOKMARK IT! Backflip BlinkBits Blinklist blogmarks del.icio.us digg Furl Raw Sugar reddit Shadows Simpy Spurl Technorati Yahoo My Web More... | WHAT IS THIS?

SOCIAL BOOKMARK IT!
Backflip BlinkBits Blinklist blogmarks del.icio.us digg Furl Raw Sugar reddit Shadows Simpy Spurl Technorati Yahoo My Web More... | WHAT IS THIS?